Hi all thanks adding me. I have just bought a 2005 1.2 8v punto. The guy I bought it from delivered it to me so I couldn't check the water oil showed on dip stick. But after it sitting over night I checked oil and water, turns ou none of either.
Put a pint of oil in and it shows on the dip stick. Topped up the water and went to work. Started it after work and got the dreaded gurgling from the heater matrix. Popped the oil cap and found creamy oil. I'm guessing the head is gone. So what your thoughts? Are the blocks prone to crack or do they just warp? Would it be easier just to pickup a second had engine?

The block should be ok,but head will need to be skimmed if you decide to change the head gasket.
Any service history on the car,what milage is showing,
You could try and source a second hand engine,but you are taking a risk with that engine.
tony

No history with the car apart from a bill for cat and oil change 2 years ago. Car has 100k on it.
I have sourced an engine for £110 delivered. Seams cheap should I be worried. He has garunteed it is a good runner.

Pete373 said:

No history with the car apart from a bill for cat and oil change 2 years ago. Car has 100k on it.
I have sourced an engine for £110 delivered. Seams cheap should I be worried. He has garunteed it is a good runner.

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A good running engine can still be quite worn compared to what you would expect for a well serviced 100K engine.

If you are able to fit a replacement engine you might as well take the head off your existing engine, get a feel for its current condition, find out what the problem is and then decide what you want to do.

I do t think the 100k one I have is well serviced it was dry of oil and water. So my thinking is that for the price of the complete engine vs the price of head gasket set and bolts plus skim. The swap looks like the most economical option.

Changing the engine is way more effort than doing the head gasket on the 1.2. If it is your only transport obviously getting the head skimmed is a lot of logistics, getting it to the machine shop and back as well as the strip and rebuild. But 100k is about it for an original head gasket. Yes plenty of engines will do more but it is always with a risk. Whip the head off and look. If the gasket is damaged then you know your problem. Get the head skimmed and rebuild. If there are no signs of gasket failure (highly unlikely) then go for the unknown second hand engine.

I changed the head gasket on my wife's 1.2 at 100k 135k and last year at 170k. Each time I changed it before it had failed so I had no need to skim the head. It is a simple job. The pro mechanics here will tell you how quickly they do it, but even if you take triple or quad the time, it will not be that long. Just make sure you keep all the tappets, valves spring and shims all matched up so they go back exactly where they came from, then your valve clearances will not be far adrift.